Door



July 1o, 1926. 1,616,496

, E. J. HARDTKE DOOR Filed 0611.60, 1924 2 sheets-sheet 1 IZ Q A TTORNIL'YS.

Patented July 10, 1928.

errno srrss EDWARD J'. HARDTKE, OF MILWAKEE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR TO SEAMAN BODY C013- rArENr Fries.

PORATION, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION 0F WISCONSIN,

DOOR.

Application filed October 30, 1924. Serial No. 746,727.

This invention relates to improvements in vdoors and more particularly to automobile doors pressed from sheet metal and adapted to support and receive a window frame.

Considerable effort has been made to construct an automobile'body which can readily be changed from an open body to a closed body or vice versa. For this purpose the side windows of the body have been slidably mounted in suitable guides between the walls thereof in manydifferent ways well known to those skilled in the artand a suitable crank or other means provided for raising and lowering the windows.

There has been some difficulty, however, in providing a door which may be economically manufactured andat the same time have the required strength and rigidity for supporting the window frame and actuating mechanism therefor and to receive the frame so that the same disappears entirely within the door.

Many attempts have been made to press doors'of this character from sheet metal, but various problems which arise in bending and shaping the metal have resulted in doors which are too expensive to permit of competitive manufacture if the proper strength and rigidity is to be given' them to properly support the window frame andy actuating mechanism therefor.

One of the objects of the present invention, therefore, is to provide an improved door which is pressed from sheet metal and bent to provide reinforcing members and to receive a window frame, and which ymay be economically manufactured.

Another object is to provide 'an improved door which is pressed from a single sheet of metal and bent in such wise as to provide a door reinforced at itsedges and adapted to receive a window frame and support the actuating mechanism therefor.

Other objects and advantages will hereinafter appear. Y

For the purpose of illustrating the invention, an embodiment thereof isshown in the drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation, showing the improved door applied to the body of a car and the window raised to malrea closed car;

Fig",v 2 is section on line 2-#2 of Fig.A 1;

a. aeration en line Fig. l

Fig. 4 is a perspective view, partly broken away, of the improved door, showing the manner in which the edges thereof are bent and shaped; and

Fig. 5 is a detailsectionalview showing a modification.

lIlhe door comprises, in general, a front panel 1 having the top edge thereof bent rearwardly, as shown yin Fig. 3, to provide areinforcing top plate 2, and a reinforcing member 3 at the bottom edge of the door. The top plate 2 may be bent back upon itself to provide a reinforcing bead 4 at the edge thereof, and vthen bent downwardlyand rearwardly to provide a reinforcing member '5 for the top edge of the door, (member 5 being shaped to form with top 'plate 2 and the top edge portion of panel 1 a box-shaped or substantially enclosed channel reinforcing member therefor, as shown in Fig. 3). T'he'front edge of panel l to which the hinges are applied'lin mountingl the door upon the body is bent rearwardly and inwardly as shown in Figs. 2 anda to form a side reinforcing member '6 providing a channel 7 for thepurpose hereinafter eX- plained. The rear side edge of panel 11is bent back upon itself, then rearwardly and ,inwardly to provide 'a reinforcing beadv 8 and a reinforcing member 9 providing ka channel 10 for the purposehereinafter eX- plained. The top plate 2 terminates short of the inwardly extending portions 11 and 12 of members 6 and 9, respectively, as shown in Fig. 4. The ends of top plate 2 are secured to the portions 13 and 14 of vmembers 6 and 9, respectively, inany suitable manner vsuch as by soldering or spot-welding., The bottom-:edge of panell 1 may be bent back upon itself to form a reinforcing bead 15, as shown in Fig. 3. The reinforcing mem- `ber3 for the bottomedge ofthe door may be substantially U-shaped, as shown in Fig. 3, this memberhaving the lower edge 16 thereof bentdownwardly and vpressed between the folds of bead 15. Member 3 thereby provides a boX-shapedor substantially enclosed channel reinforcing member with'the bottom edge portion of panel 1, to give added strength and rigidity tothe bottom edge of the door. y

The inwardly extending portions 1.1 and 12 of the side reincrcing Gand 9,

respectively, may be flush with the vertical portion 17 of member 3 and secured to the ends thereof, as at 18, in any suitable way. The upper edge of member 3 may be bent upwardly to provide a reinforcing flange 19 therefor. The bead and member 3 may be integral, as shown in Fig. 5. lVhen this is the case, the entire door is formed from a single piece ofl sheet metal.

The upper porti'onof panel 1 may be pressed outwardly to form longitudinal reinforcing corrugations -20 a-nd v21 to align with similar corrugations 22 and 23, respectively, formed in the body of the vehicle as shown in Fig. 1. Vhen these corrugations` are formed, the sheet metal may be cut away at the portions thereof to -be 'corrul gated so that there will only be a single layer of thev metal at the portions of bead vS which constitute vthe ends of corrugations 20 vand Y21, as shown in Fig. 4, thus facilitating the lcorrugating operation.

Channel guides 24 for the window frame 25l are fitted yin channels 10 and 7, the vguides being securedto portions 13 and 14 Iand inwardly extending portions 11l and 12 in any suitable manner such as by solderingor vspotwelding. 1 The upper ends 26 and 27 of portions 11 and 12, respectively, may be bent forwardly over the rear flanges of channel guides 24, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. A suitable vvood panel or backing 28 is secured in -any'suitable way to inwardly extending portions 11 and 12 and vertical portion 17 of member 3, the wooden panel 28 being adapted yto support the actuating mechanism for window frame 25, the lock and other accessories which may be applied to the door. l

The guides 24 for window-frame 25 form the subject matter of a separate application filed October 30, 1925, Serial No. 746,726,

- and are only here shown and ydescribed with sufficient clearness to enable those skilled in the art to understand the manner in which they may -be applied to doors made in accordance with the present invention.

Various changes in the size, shape and arrangementof the parts may be adopted without departing from the spirit of the invention or `the scope of the claims.

The invention claimed is:

1. A sheet metal ydoor ,constructed of a single piece of metal havin-g the main portion thereof constituting the front panel of the door, the upper edge portion of the piece 'of metal yextending inwardly from the main ,portionl to provide a reinforcing top plate, the side edge portions of the piece of metal extending inwardly from the main yportion and having their extremities extending toward each other and terminating in spaced relation to the ymain portion to provide reinforcements for the sides off-the door.

2. A sheet metal door constructed of a single piece of metal having the main/portion thereof constituting the front panel of the door, the upper edge portion of the piece of metal extending inwardly from the main portion to provide a reinforcing top plate, the side edge portions of the piece of metal extending inwardly from the main portions and having their extremities extending toward each other and terminating in spaced relation to the main portion to provide reinforcements for the sides of the door, the lower edge portion of the piece of metal being bent back against the panel and folrmed to constitute a substantially U-shaped reinforcing member having one leg integral with the front panel and having its other leg located in spaced relation to the front panel, the body portion of the U- shaped reinforcing member being secured to the extremities of the side edge portions.

3. sheet metal door having va panel, a reinforcing top plate integral with the upper edge of the panel, reinforcing side members integral with the side edges of the panel and made up` of inwardly extending` portions having extremities extending toward each ot-her and terminating lin spaced relation to the panel,l and a reinforcing member connected to the lower edge of the .panel and extending upwardlyv in spaced relation to the panel and secured to the reinforcing side members. y I

4. A one-piece sheet 'metal door comprising ka front` ,panel having the top edge thereof bent rearwardly to provide a reinforcing top plate for said door, the side edges of said panel being bent rearwardly and inwardly to Vprovide reinforcements for the sides of said door and channels for receiving guides for a window frame, said top plate terminating short of the inwardly bent portions of said side edges, the lower edge of said panel being vbent back Iupon itself to forml a bottom rail for the door and a reinforced edge depending from said rail.

5. sheet metal Idoor constructedr of a single piece. of metal having a mainportion .thereof constituting the front panel of the door, the upper edge portion olf the piece of metal extending inwardly from the main portion to provide a lreinforcing top plate vand thence downwardly andoutwardly below the reinforcing top plate to coact therewith and with the adjacent upper portion of the panel to provide a box-likereinforcement for the upper end of the door, reinforcing ymembers along the sides of the door and a reinforcing member along the lower end of the door.

6. A sheet metaldoor constructed of a single pieceof metal having the main portion thereof constituting thevfront panel of the door, the upper edge ,portion of the piece of metal yextending inwardly from the main portion to provide a reinforcing top plate,

Tit

' the extremities of the side edge portions and the channels mounted on the door and verl tically aligned with the spaces between the edge of the top plate and said extremities.

7. A sheet metal door comprising a front panel having the top edge thereof bent downwardly and rearwardly to form a boxshaped reinforcing member at said edge, the bottom edge of said panel being bent back upon itself and shaped to provide a reinforcingbead and a box-shaped reinforcing member at said edge, the side edges of said panel being bent rearwardly and inwardly to provide reinforcements for said edges and channels for receiving guides for a window frame. v n. t

. 8. A sheet metal door comprising a front panel having the top edge thereof bent downwardly and rearwardly to form a boxshaped reinforcing member at said edgeythe bottom edge of said panel being bent back upon itself and shaped to provide a reinforcing bead and a box-shaped reinforcingI member at said edge, the side edges of said panel being bent rearwardlyand inwardly to provide reinforcements for said edges and channels for receiving guides for a window frame, the ends of said top and bottom reinforcing members being secured to the respective ends of said side reinforcing members.

In witness whereof I `hereto affix my signature.

EDVARD J. HARDTKE. 

